Gardening

It’s been awhile, so I thought I’d repot my tea tins in honor of Earth Day. I only did 3 this year — chives, mint, and a flower for color. I’m hoping to put them outside on the new patio once it gets painted. (she says, holding her breath in hopes she didn’t just jinx it!)

In reviewing my own tutorial just now, I realized I skipped the plastic liner step. Oops. We’ll see how it goes. Guess I better go find some cute plates to put under those, eh?

It was so cold outside today, I potted indoors on the kitchen table. Shhh… don’t tell.

Hanging out in the window. Crossing my fingers they’re out of reach of Ms. Kitty Slug.

Did you do something special today in honor of Earth Day?

Work has been so busy–lots of long hours. I still haven’t put my peas in the ground: hoping to do that this week sometime. But I managed to get all my friend seed packages ready. Off to the Post Office today.

I dressed up the envelopes with free hand leaves in pretty vintage fabrics late last night. I’m thinking I may tape over them just to be on the safe side. And then I dashed off a quick photo this morning. You should get your seeds by the end of the week. For those of you who are participating: THANK YOU!!

My friend from Seminary, Becka, is now a minister in La Grange , IL. Her church came together, raised $5000 and gave 50 church members $100 to make a difference in the world. It didn’t matter how they spent the money, just as long as it was used for good!

Becka, (now the Reverend Rebecca McClintock) envisioned “Plant-a-palooza!” She asked her friends and colleagues to join her. If we signed up, she would send us seeds. Seeds to plant food for those who are hungry.

The North Coast of Oregon is a tough place to garden. Sunlight isn’t always around. And then there is the neighborhood deer population to consider… but in truth, Oregon knows hunger. 13.6% of our population suffers from food insecurity, while 5.9% suffers from low food insecurity, also known as hunger — many of those are children. While I’m not sure I can GET food to grow, it’s certainly worth the effort. Because no one should go hungry. And I want people to have access to good food, nutritional food. But in a world where money is tight, and cheap food is unhealthy, maybe giving back by growing good food is a way to make a real difference?

So I signed up for Plant-a-Palooza.

My peas arrived this week. I’ll need to find a place to plant them where the deer won’t help themselves. The back porch, maybe? With the right planters? But it’s a start, right? I’ll keep you updated with a Peas Progress report from time to time. In the meantime, if you could pray in the direction of my peas, I’d sure appreciate it!

Would you like to help me sow food: good food for those in need? Send me an email with your address and I’ll send you some seeds to plant that will grow in your area. Let’s multiply this good food and feed the multitudes.

Ways you can share your veggies with those in need:

Donate to a food pantry/bank

Make a meal for a neighbor in need

Share with a single mom or dad or a family that might be struggling

Talk to a domestic abuse or homeless shelter to see if they could use some fresh food

Organize a cooking day to cook meals for shut-ins

Meals-on Wheels and Loaves and Fishes. Enough said!

So, join me? Let’s feed our communities this summer. I have utter faith and a can of organic deer repellant that says we CAN!

*Friends, I can only send seeds to addresses in the US. Unfortunately, international customs typically won’t allow plant matter to be shipped in the mail. But, you can still join the effort… and I hope won’t let a few pesky shipping laws keep you from participating in your own fashion.

This peach rose grows in a weedy patch in the corner of our yard. A patch I keep meaning to get to, but don’t. Its location is unfortunate, but we just haven’t found the right plan to fix it to our liking. Eventually, we’ll figure it out, and the rose will have to go. Until then, this lovely but ill-placed rose blooms twice a year. And if I’m lucky, I get to it before the deer can.

My lovely pink peonies finally bloomed. And then promptly hit the ground due to weight and rain. Um. Yeah. Kinda forgot to stake them. I planted these peonies in the front yard 3 years ago, and last year they didn’t need staking. So, it didn’t sink in, until I found full blooms dusting the ground, that this year might be different.

Clearly I’m a novice. I love these flowers so much, and after our visit to the peony farm last week, I’m seriously considering adding many more to our (as of yet, un-planted) back yard garden. But, it’s clear I need a little education. So, I did some googling, and darn if there isn’t a lot of information on growing peonies out there. Apparently, it’s a bit of an obsession.

Kinda staked. That’s actually the technical term.

I did find a FABULOUS site that you must visit if you’re considering adding peonies to your garden. For the name alone, Peony’s Envy is worth a visit. But you’ll find it’s a wonderful resource for all things peonies. From planting advice, to an amazing guide of the various shapes, sizes, and colors available, this site covers it all. There are lots of visuals (which is rare, on gardening websites!) and terrific advice on all things peonies. You can even order online, if you don’t live in the area to visit their gardens. It’s all written in extremely accessible language and I can’t fathom a topic on peonies that the site doesn’t cover. There is even information about those elusive tree peonies and how best to plant them!

If you’re sensing a pink theme to our garden, well, your spidey senses would be right. I can’t help myself. Our yard is a large frilly ballerina thing and I love it.

I’ve absolutely scoured Peony’s Envy and it’s one of those resources that should be in every gardener’s bookmarks. But I warn you, it’s addictive. The photos are divine and you’ll probably have a wish list a mile long and be cursing me for introducing you. Peonies, they’re the gateway drug to all things beautiful. Enjoy! (and if you live the in the area and can visit Peony’s Envy Farm, tell them I sent you! And take pictures, lots and lots of pictures.)